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Hello Katniss Everdeen! InStyle contacted designers to come up looks for Katniss' show stopping fire costume for the opening ceremony scene. One of my closest friends, designer Renaldo Barnette, has been freelancing for Nicole Miller and got to take a stab at this costume design project. (Being a bit of a Hunger Games fanatic, I think I may have been more excited about it than he was!)

(Nicole Miller)

Although I may be bias, I think Renaldo really hit the nail on the head with this one! He truly captured her fierce transformation into a strong and beautiful woman while maintaining her essence (with her signature braid) and the drama of the moment with the cape and headpiece.

(Rachel Roy)

Rachel Roy's interpretation is also a stunning illustration, however it may be a little too avant garde. (If anything could be avant garde in "the Capital.")

(Charolette Ronson)

The Hunger Games is currently filming and I can't wait to see it and soak up more of Peeta, Gale, and Katniss. If you'd like to see more of the designer costume designs, check out InStyle.

(Tibi and BCBG)

This trilogy is one of my recent faves and I'm thrilled its being brought to the silver screen. Hopefully there will more more costume design illustrations leaking out as well.

Looking for the perfect holiday gift for your fashion-design-major little sis, your artistic 4 year old niece, or your impossible to shop for yet fabulous bff? Well look no further, because I've assembled the perfect gift guide for the fashion loving artist in your life.

The first gift of the guide, for The Fashion Student is the (1) jumbo button box. It's ideal for art supplies (or jewelry) and is on my personal wish list. The (2) Aphrodite USB hub adds the right amount of kitch to any workspace. (3) 101 Things I learned in Fashion School is an incredibly informative little book for any design freshman. These (4) sketch books are the ones that I use for all my illustration work. They come in 2 different sizes, have thick bright white paper, and perforated edges that make a clean tear. The (5) mini pink sewing machine would be great for that last minute hem adjustment. (Or for a person with a tiny apartment who's too lazy to get out their big sewing machine from storage. . .like me :)

For The Hard to Shop for Fashion Friend: My (1) fashion illustration mini-prints would be great for any fashion minded girl. Maybe your bff with a new office or apartment to decorate? The button or snapshot frame magnets would be adorable to adorn a cubicle or fridge. The Kate Spade gold dot iphone case is my new favorite thing! I have it, and get comments on it daily. (And the limited edition gold retro hand held phone is just begging to be paired with it.) Buying a book about your friends favorite designer is brilliant. I received this beautiful Valentino book as a gift. It not only contains a plethora of stunning photos and sketches from the legendary designer but also looks amazing on a coffee table.

Little Etsy Extras: Looking for that extra little gift thats the perfect unique handmade addition to your gift, Etsy is the website for you. Can't afford Chanel, you can pick up this beautiful (1) signed pencil drawing print. The (2) colored pencil stud earring make for a fun and quirky gift. A (3) pocket mirror from my shop would be a great little addition to a cosmetic or handbag purchase. The (4) sterling silver scissors are a great charm necklace for any designer, crafter or artist. The chevron striped pouch makes for a very chic pencil case and a pack of (6) fashion illustration flat note cards from my shop would be lovely to get in the mail thanking you for the fabulous gifts.

For The Little Artist: In my doctors office I fell in love with possibly the coolest looking (1) wall easel/clip board with a roll of paper to continuously draw and paint. The (2) Crayola crayon maker would have been life changing as a child! With these (3) face plates its now okay to play with your food. And last but not least, (4) Aquadoodle, the toddler toy that allows them to make art with just water. I've played with this at my friends house and I love it! (I've actually fought with a 3 year old over the water pen!)

About two months ago I was approached by a branding group to sketch fashion illustrations for a new re-branding proposal for discount chain stores Syms and Filene's Basement. They commissioned me to draw some simple line illustrations to be used in ad mock-ups for their proposal presentation.

Normally I'd feel uncomfortable sharing conceptual artwork that never made it to print but since the retail giant announced that they were filling Chapter-11 and would be closing all their stores I thought I would share a few examples from the project with you.

I grew up making frequent trips to Filene's Basement with my mom and I'm sad to see them close, although it was a thrill to work on this little project for them before they bid adieu.